REPUBLICAN SENATE WORKED THE FEWEST DAYS OF ANY SENATE IN 60 YEARS

During the summer of 2016, Republicans took a seven week recess. According to Congressional record data, that is the longest summer recess of any Senate in decades.

That's not all. In 2016, this Republican Senate is on pace to work the fewest days of any Senate since the 1950s. Republicans are refusing to show up to work at a record pace.

JUDGES

Supreme Court

Senate Republicans' obstruction of Chief Judge Merrick Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court is unprecedented. According to the non-partisan Congressional Research Service, "of the six nominations made to vacancies that have existed during presidential election years since 1900, each was confirmed by the Senate." The respected Supreme Court experts at SCOTUSBlog agreed - "The historical record does not reveal any instances since at least 1900 of the president failing to nominate and/or the Senate failing to confirm a nominee in a presidential election year because of the impending election."

Now, Judge Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court has been waiting for a hearing for longer than any other nominee in modern history. Since 1949, every nomination to the Supreme Court received a hearing within 82 days. Judge Garland has already been waiting more than twice that long.

Circuit and District Court Judges

According to data from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, this Republican Senate has confirmed the fewest circuit and district court judges of any Senate since the 1950s.  [CRS]

Because of Republican obstruction, the number of judicial emergencies has tripled. These judicial emergencies leave our courts overworked and deny many Americans the timely access to justice that they deserve. [US Courts]

BILLS PASSED

Despite claims of productivity, this Republican Senate has passed far fewer bills than other Congresses in the last term of a two-term presidency. This Senate has passed more than one hundred fewer bills than the 30-year average.  [CRS]

REPUBLICANS REFUSE TO ACT ON KEY ISSUES FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

Closing the Terror Gap. On two separate occasions, Senate Republicans voted against Senate Democrats' proposal to prevent those on terrorist watch lists from purchasing guns and explosives.  [114^th Congress, 1^st Session, RCV 319, 12/3/15; 114^th Congress, 2^nd Session, RCV 106, 6/20/16]

Refusing to Fix Our Broken Campaign Finance System. Again and again, Republicans have voted against commonsense reforms to fix our broken campaign finance system. The Senate Democrats' "We the People" agenda would make politicians more accountable by increasing campaign finance disclosure and reining in the flood of dark money from Super PACs and other special interests. [113^th Congress, 2^nd Session, RCV 261; 9/11/14; 114^th Congress, 1^st Session, RCV 26; 1/22/15; RCV 36, 1/28/15; RCV 107, 3/26/15; 114^th Congress, 2^nd Session, RCV 15, 2/2/16]

Doing Nothing on Student Debt. Despite the crushing burden of student loan debt millions of Americans are struggling with, Senate Republicans have refused to do anything to help make college more affordable for middle class families. The In the Red Act would help put America on a path to debt free college by allowing borrowers to refinance their student loans, provide two free years of community college, and ensure that Pell Grants keep up with rising costs. Senate Republicans have voted against similar proposals in the past. [114^th Congress - 1^st Session, RCV 86, 3/25/15; 113^th Congress - 2^nd Session, RCV 185, 6/11/14]

Refusing to Bring Up Criminal Justice Reform. We have more work to do to make sure that every American, regardless of race, community, or background can count on fair treatment, equal protection, and shared rights under the law. Despite the fact that the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act was reported out of the Judiciary Committee by a strong bipartisan vote over eight months ago, Republicans have failed to take up the bill or act to address any of these issues. Republicans admit they refuse to take up this critical effort because it is an election year. [NY Times, 9/17/16]

Shutting Down the Ex-Im Bank. Last year, Senate Republicans shut down the Export-Import Bank. Our nation's small businesses depend on the bank to support their exports to other companies. Now, Republicans refuse to confirm any nominee to the Ex-Im Bank, preventing the necessary quorum of 3 board members to authorize the bank to approve large loans and leaving American businesses in limbo and unable to secure the financing they need to grow. [Bloomberg, 6/30/15; NY Times, 6/28/16]

Refusing to give millions of Americans a raise. Instead of helping lift millions of Americans out of poverty, Republicans have repeatedly blocked legislation that to raise the minimum wage. The Raise the Wage Act would raise the minimum wage to $12 by 2020, increasing wages for 35 million Americans. [114^th Congress, 1^st Session, RCV 93, 3/26/15; 113^th Congress, 2^nd Session, RCV 117, 4/30/14; 110^th Congress, 1^st Session, RCV 23, 1/24/07; EPI, 5/7/15]

Doing nothing on equal pay. More than 50 years after passage of the Equal Pay Act, women still only earn 80 cents on every dollar that a man does, and the gender pay gap persists across nearly all occupations. Despite the fact that the Paycheck Fairness Act would strengthen families and our economy by providing working women with the tools they need to close the gender wage gap, Senate Republicans have repeatedly blocked the Paycheck Fairness Act. [114^th Congress, 1^st Session, RCV 82, 3/24/15; 113^th Congress, 2^nd Session, RCV 262, 9/15/14; RCV 103, 4/9/14]

CIVILIAN NOMINATIONS CONFIRMED

This Republican Senate has failed to do its job across the federal government. According to the Washington Post's Catherine Rampell, "Empty offices pock the entire executive branch, too, thanks to unprecedented levels of Senate obstruction. This Congress, the Senate has confirmed the fewest civilian nominees in modern history, according to a recent report from the Congressional Research Service. As of mid-September, just 248 nominees had been confirmed. That's, again, half the average number confirmed over comparable periods in the final Congresses of other recent two-term presidents."